Monteleone Mastertone-style Neck on Alvarez Pot 5 String Resonator Banjo (1970/1973)
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Monteleone Mastertone-style Neck on Alvarez Pot Model 5 String Resonator Banjo (1970/1973), made in Japan/New York, natural finish, mahogany neck with rosewood fingerboard, period black hard shell case.
Here's an instrument with a story reaching back to the early days of the vintage instrument market, involving familiar New York names and unusually well documented. In late 1970 a young man walked out of Ward-Brodt Music Co. in Madison, Wisconsin with a brand new Alvarez Mastertone-style banjo. The Japanese "copy era" was just getting underway, and such imported instruments were the new lower-priced options in the US. This same basic early Mastertone copy was available under a number of brands, Alvarez (distributed by St. Louis Music, a major jobber) being one of the more common.
This aspiring player moved to the NYC area and began taking banjo lessons with a local teacher who opined the Alvarez banjo neck was not the best and suggested a better quality replacement. The player went out to the fledgling Mandolin Bros. on Staten Island and purchased a new RB-4 Mastertone replica neck made by their young repair craftsman whose work was already attracting notice for its exceptional quality. If you haven't guessed yet, that craftsman was John Monteleone, then just starting his exceptional career.
This instrument remains as it was assembled in late 1973, a vintage Japanese pot with the Mastertone neck Monteleone hand crafted. This is a generally accurate 1930s RB-4/early RB-75 style with the "Flying Eagle" inlay pattern, "Mastertone" block at the 20th fret and script "Gibson" logo on the headstock. It is cosmetically similar to the neck on Snuffy Jenkins' famous original RB-4 but lacks the side binding line and is made of mahogany (not walnut) with a single-bound rosewood fingerboard. There are railroad spikes at frets 7 and 10. The tuners are period Planets with a geared 5th string peg. The wood crafting and inlay work is beautifully executed and very neat, certainly more so than what Gibson was making in 1973!
John Monteleone was shown photos of this banjo recently and had this to say: "Thanks for sending this. Yes, that would have been one of my early Mastertone 5-string conversion necks. Brings back some memories. Good lord…fifty years ago!!" Monteleone has of course gone on to become probably the world's most esteemed archtop guitar builder, but this neck shows the level of craft he had already achieved at the beginning of his career.
The Alvarez pot is standard for the period; it is fully functional but most any banjo afficionado would now choose to mount this neck on a higher quality pot. IF you have an original pre-war style 3, 4 or 7 tenor or plectrum and are looking for a top-notch conversion neck this is a truly stellar opportunity! It would also suit a high-grade modern pot, Huber tone ring, etc. Very few similar quality modern options are currently available, and this neck is now itself gently aged 50 years.
This banjo has remained with the original owner since new and the story is fully documented. The original receipt and hang tag for the Alvarez are included; the banjo was inspected in March 1970 and purchased in December that year at a price of $160. The receipt from Mandolin Bros. is also included, dated 26 May 1973; at this early point the business name is still written in by hand. The basic neck cost $220, plus additions for the tuners and case for a total of $317.33 paid off in July that year. This is a fully playable instrument as is, and a really cool piece of history but also a serious opportunity to convert or upgrade another professional Mastertone 5-string to the highest standard.
Overall length is 38 in. (96.5 cm.), 11 in. (27.9 cm.) diameter head, and 3 7/16 in. (8.7 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 26 1/2 in. (673 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/8 in. (29 mm.).
This banjo shows minor signs of play but remains as assembled over 50 years ago on Staten Island. The neck has only light wear, with some tiny dings and dents but no serious wear. The original frets and fingerboard also show very light wear, and play perfectly. There is a tiny filled dot in the neck binding just behind the 5th string nut, significance unknown. The Alvarez pot has some light signs of use, mostly corrosion to some of the metal on the upper side. This is a fully playable instrument as is, complete in the lightly worn case it has rested in since summer 1973 with the receipts telling its story. Overall Excellent Condition.
Here's an instrument with a story reaching back to the early days of the vintage instrument market, involving familiar New York names and unusually well documented. In late 1970 a young man walked out of Ward-Brodt Music Co. in Madison, Wisconsin with a brand new Alvarez Mastertone-style banjo. The Japanese "copy era" was just getting underway, and such imported instruments were the new lower-priced options in the US. This same basic early Mastertone copy was available under a number of brands, Alvarez (distributed by St. Louis Music, a major jobber) being one of the more common.
This aspiring player moved to the NYC area and began taking banjo lessons with a local teacher who opined the Alvarez banjo neck was not the best and suggested a better quality replacement. The player went out to the fledgling Mandolin Bros. on Staten Island and purchased a new RB-4 Mastertone replica neck made by their young repair craftsman whose work was already attracting notice for its exceptional quality. If you haven't guessed yet, that craftsman was John Monteleone, then just starting his exceptional career.
This instrument remains as it was assembled in late 1973, a vintage Japanese pot with the Mastertone neck Monteleone hand crafted. This is a generally accurate 1930s RB-4/early RB-75 style with the "Flying Eagle" inlay pattern, "Mastertone" block at the 20th fret and script "Gibson" logo on the headstock. It is cosmetically similar to the neck on Snuffy Jenkins' famous original RB-4 but lacks the side binding line and is made of mahogany (not walnut) with a single-bound rosewood fingerboard. There are railroad spikes at frets 7 and 10. The tuners are period Planets with a geared 5th string peg. The wood crafting and inlay work is beautifully executed and very neat, certainly more so than what Gibson was making in 1973!
John Monteleone was shown photos of this banjo recently and had this to say: "Thanks for sending this. Yes, that would have been one of my early Mastertone 5-string conversion necks. Brings back some memories. Good lord…fifty years ago!!" Monteleone has of course gone on to become probably the world's most esteemed archtop guitar builder, but this neck shows the level of craft he had already achieved at the beginning of his career.
The Alvarez pot is standard for the period; it is fully functional but most any banjo afficionado would now choose to mount this neck on a higher quality pot. IF you have an original pre-war style 3, 4 or 7 tenor or plectrum and are looking for a top-notch conversion neck this is a truly stellar opportunity! It would also suit a high-grade modern pot, Huber tone ring, etc. Very few similar quality modern options are currently available, and this neck is now itself gently aged 50 years.
This banjo has remained with the original owner since new and the story is fully documented. The original receipt and hang tag for the Alvarez are included; the banjo was inspected in March 1970 and purchased in December that year at a price of $160. The receipt from Mandolin Bros. is also included, dated 26 May 1973; at this early point the business name is still written in by hand. The basic neck cost $220, plus additions for the tuners and case for a total of $317.33 paid off in July that year. This is a fully playable instrument as is, and a really cool piece of history but also a serious opportunity to convert or upgrade another professional Mastertone 5-string to the highest standard.
Overall length is 38 in. (96.5 cm.), 11 in. (27.9 cm.) diameter head, and 3 7/16 in. (8.7 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 26 1/2 in. (673 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/8 in. (29 mm.).
This banjo shows minor signs of play but remains as assembled over 50 years ago on Staten Island. The neck has only light wear, with some tiny dings and dents but no serious wear. The original frets and fingerboard also show very light wear, and play perfectly. There is a tiny filled dot in the neck binding just behind the 5th string nut, significance unknown. The Alvarez pot has some light signs of use, mostly corrosion to some of the metal on the upper side. This is a fully playable instrument as is, complete in the lightly worn case it has rested in since summer 1973 with the receipts telling its story. Overall Excellent Condition.